“Schools have begun to offer three-year stints in sixth form to pupils whose grades are too low to start A-levels or BTECs.

At least three schools and one academy trust have set up a “transitionary” year 12 in which pupils with grades below C at GCSE can take level one or level two courses, before moving on to level three courses such as AS-levels or an apprenticeship.

The model suits schools in areas where pupils are struggling to move onto level three courses, but who come from close-knit communities reluctant to send them to colleges far away......”

More of the idiot conservatives and grand idiot gove trying to push A-levels as the solution to everything, while failing to account for the fact a) not everyone learns in the same way and is suited to the academic style of A-levels (or the new GCSEs) b) that there is a huge projected shortfall in skilled labourers who do not need an academic education compared to a vocational one, and c) that creating an evnironment where every student is expected to study an academic pre-university programme and then attend university neglects the aforementioned skilled labourer market which is critical to the maintenance of infrastructure by non-state bodies, and also devalues the worth of a degree in every other metric, as seen in the US.

Most pupils in my second college did this; a lot of them failed GCSE twice though. It is a good option for those who need A levels at this stage, I know one person who did this who went from getting five GCSES with only a C in GCSE maths to doing 4 A levels getting an A in maths and A in AS further maths, so it was certainly beneficial to them and will be to a number of people. However it will be a waste of time for a lot of people, alternative routes should be encouraged.

(Original post by sulaimanali)artful_lounger the a levels are new as well..they haven't changed the grading system but theres a new (tougher) spec for all a level subjects now..especially as they are linear and not modular...

(Original post by Carbon Dioxide)
...the same government that has promoted Apprenticeships more than any other government in history?

If by "promoted apprenticeships" you mean "strip away skilled labourer apprenticeships and funding, encouraged apprenticeships for basic retail and admin positions to create a form of pseudo-slavery where massive corporations can hire young people and pay them a fraction of minimum wage for unskilled positions", or perhaps "funnel huge amounts of centrally disbursed taxpayer money into building new technical schools, awarding massive construction contracts to companies they own shares in, and not providing any additional support to local authorities once they have been built nor increasing funding for teacher training to get people to actually go into them, causing a huge number to fail outright and most to be placed in special measures at the cost of the local governments", then yes.

(Original post by artful_lounger)
"...encouraged apprenticeships for basic retail and admin positions to create a form of pseudo-slavery where massive corporations can hire young people and pay them a fraction of minimum wage for unskilled positions"

And where is your proof that Apprenticeships have been a complete ploy by the government to encourage "McJob Jr."s? Down here in Cornwall (and elsewhere in the country), there are certainly massive corporations offering apprenticeships which offer little more than a few pounds an hour, but there are also smaller companies offering apprenticeships to young future-employees. And besides, the lower "apprentice wage" is only for those aged under 19, or those who are doing a first year.

...yeah, right! If I'm supposedly trolling without even giving any thought into it, then what do you call a crude overexaggeration of apprenticeships that attempts to paint this country as the worst dystopia since Nineteen Eighty-Four?